Pep Talk
by Reese S. Quill
Summary: A missing scene from 'School's Out'. One-shot.


_Stupid, stupid, stupid, I was so stupid-_

"Karma! Wait!"

Karma's breath is short and sharp. He is tall and slender, but with such a talent for pain that few would follow him in this kind of mood.

Nobody except for those who can bear it.

"Karma!"

He can feel Nagisa's eyes boring a hole at the back of his head, but also hears the blunette's heaving. Karma's long strides are no match for Nagisa's short ones; if he truly wanted to lose him, all he had to do was walk a little faster. Karma halts.

A few seconds later, a warm hand rests timidly on Karma's shoulder. "No one cares if you didn't top an exam," Nagisa says. "We have seven tentacles. That's already a victory."

"For you," Karma replies, shifting his shoulder away.

"For us," Nagisa corrects. "You're part of this classroom, too."

Karma studies his surroundings. With amusement, he recalls this was the place he'd hung out after the first day of school; the tree by the cliff. Nagisa had run after him then, too. He walks towards the old tree's trunk. "Do you remember what I told you here, a while back?"

"That you wanted to succeed by yourself?"

"Ha, I knew you'd get it. Did I ever tell you why?"

"No," Nagisa says. "But I can guess. "

Karma leans against the tree, and prepares to be entertained.

Nagisa takes a deep breath. "Because you are scared."

Karma automatically opens his mouth to protest, but Nagisa cuts him off with a blue-eyed gaze that burns. "You fear that if you let people in again, they'll let you down, just like they always have. And – you're scared of letting us down, too." Nagisa pauses. "You feel like you already have."

Karma lets his face get covered by shadows. "You should have become a fortune-teller, Nagisa."

"I just notice things, that's all. I wasn't finished."

"Go on, then."

"You've always felt different. You've always _been_ different," Nagisa says, because there's no use denying that. "You feel like you have to compensate for that somehow, with your brains and your strategies. But you're wrong."

Karma raises his head a quarter of a fraction. "What did you say?"

"You're wrong. You don't have to prove yourself." Nagisa steps towards him carefully, as how he'd approach a frightened animal. "You know you're the smartest in class, but you think you need to be more than that – you need to be _effortlessly_ smart. You need to not care. So, you didn't study, and you underestimated-"

"Are you finished, Nagisa?" Karma says this in a nonchalant tone, but there is an undercurrent of tension beneath his voice. "Korosensei already made it clear the mistakes I made."

"-Sorry." The blunette blushes, and Karma feels a strange twist in his stomach. "What I mean is – it's okay to care. It's okay to try. And even if you fail, well, the entire class had all failed at some point. We'll stand by you, no matter what."

A wry chuckle escapes Karma's lips. "You don't know that."

Nagisa takes another step forward. " _I_ will stand by you no matter what."

Karma realizes, quite suddenly, how close Nagisa has gotten. If he were to reach out, he'd be able to touch the other boy. Nagisa looks up at him with a burning gaze; and Karma, like the target of an assassin, is paralyzed beneath it. He breathes. "Mr. Karasuma was right. You've gotten good at sneak attacks."

Nagisa startles and backs away. "Is that how this feels like? A sneak attack? I'm sor-"

"Don't apologize. I needed that."

Karma briskly walks forward until he's but a hairsbreadth from Nagisa. The smaller boy blinks and gives him a nervous smile. And then, Karma does something strange, even for him – he wraps his arms around Nagisa, his head resting on the soft blue hair.

Nagisa lets out a gasp; but before Karma can consider stiffening or breaking away, Nagisa's arms wrap around him as well. They stay like that for a few moments – long enough for them to relax in each other's warmth and safety, long enough for Karma's searing humiliation to turn into a hot desire for improvement. He lets go first, straightening his jacket. "Thanks."

"Anytime." Nagisa looks the way Karma feels: dazed and confused. It gives the red-head an illicit thrill, being able to spark such an expression on him.

 _Interesting._

With that thought stored in his head for later analyzation, Karma turns around for the long journey to the main building. A few seconds later, he hears the sound of running footsteps behind him once more. "Karma! Wait! Where are you going?"

"The library," he tosses over his shoulder. "I doubt even the Class-A students will be wanting in on that place until after the hotel trip, and until then, I'm planning to put it into good use."

"Really?"

"Of course. You're good at pep talks, Nagisa." Karma doesn't have to look back to know that his friend is blushing again. The corners of his mouth twitch upwards. "You're welcome to join me, if you like. Give me more inspiration if I need it."

"I'd like to," Nagisa says, and Karma slows his pace until they're walking side by side. "But I'm pretty sure you don't need any."

Karma smiles. "It's always nice to know that someone believes in you."


End file.
